Hi,

I'm in my mid thirties and have gotten to the point where I want to grow into a leadership role in tech. I've never formally managed people under me, but I have lead plenty of projects, and am in a decent position of influence in my role.

The way I'm seeing it, there's 3 options:

1) Study an MBA in a reputable university and use it as a springboard to try and aim for a mid-manager position (or higher?) in tech, perhaps relocate to Europe

2) Apply for an executive MBA here in Mexico and cross my fingers because every decent program wants someone with 3 years experience as at least a manager. My gut-check from reading their brochures is negative, but I don't know if that's my bias. The opportunity cost is way less though... but I feel that the same is true for the growth opportunity, the network, and the pay.

3) Try to become a product manager in company or elsewhere and hope my management undergrad is enough so I don't get stuck in middle management forever (maybe online MBA?).

Is it foolish to want to stick with A? I have no personal situations such as children or debt holding me down at the moment and am looking at the long-term payoff

Also, are there any particular schools I should avoid applying to? Like, between INSEAD, IESE, ESADE, is the last one strictly better because of having more placement in tech?

[Edited by curious_pixel on Jan 24, 2024]

Start with the end in mind. Is Europe the goal? There's plenty more growth in Mexico than in Europe, but Europe's got a lot of lifestyle advantages and wealth potential.

1 is a viable option. The full-time MBA often comes with work permit or visa access. But... you're a bit old for some full-time MBAs. You almost certainly won't get selected for the full-time MBA at INSEAD or IESE without high-quality experience.

2 I would speak to EMBA alumni at IPADE and EGADE. I think EGADE talks less loudly about their UNC double degree and their OneMBA experiences, so don't expect international mobility. As the IESE partner in Mexico, IPADE might have a more solid education.

3 What you perhaps need is more leadership training and people management experience. It depends on your goals. The MBA is a great route to that.

Take a look at:
GMAT Tiers - strong schools for your GMAT www.find-mba.com/board/27082 (126k+ views)and then maybe....Best MBAs for international students' placement http://www.find-mba.com/board/41143 (76k+ views)How to use LinkedIn to find the best school www.find-mba.com/board/33571 (37k+views)
Do you need to speak the local language? www.find-mba.com/board/34713 (13k+ views))

Before jumping into doing an MBA, do you have the opportunity to gain a bit of management experience in your current role? If you've never formally managed anyone, it can be a bit of a shock to the system. There is also a significant difference between management and leadership and managing projects compared to people and teams/functions.

Doing an MBA (or any other qualification) is not automatically going to make you good at managing people.



It's a sad fact that many people are not equipped or suited to be successful people managers. You might find that managing people is too stressful, too isolating or takes you away too much from the work (day job) that you enjoy.

[Edited by aslamo on Jan 24, 2024]

Thanks Duncan. I do have a life in Europe as my end goal for those two reasons, but even if I ended up back in Mexico, I wouldn't feel bad about it, as long as I got a good position in the tech industry or function where my skills can shine, and I get a strong alumni network.

After reviewing your posts (great stuff, thank you for all this content), I do believe I have a real chance at the > 670 tier schools, though I'm thinking that, just as important as placement, an ~18 month program (internship) will give me more chances of relocating successfully (IE, IMD, INSEAD still seem compelling, though I have little German and zero French language skills).

I'll apply to the best schools I can in that tier to really make my time worth it, and if I land none of them, I'll go for the EMBA then.

My company also just placed me in a small cohort of a new leadership development program, which is a good problem to have, honestly (makes me wonder if the risk is worth it... just got a big raise last year and now this...)

[Edited by curious_pixel on Jan 25, 2024]

My company also just placed me in a small cohort of a new leadership development program, which is a good problem to have, honestly (makes me wonder if the risk is worth it... just got a big raise last year and now this...)

Hi!

The MBA Full Time Program at ESB Reutlingen in Germany is a great programme where you will be surrounded with an international culture and a very hands-on approach to learning!

They have been doing an MBA for over 30 years. They are the no,1 pick in Germany for business studies at universities of applied sciences. They have connections to several top companies in different industries with whom the students can network.

They have a virtual information session on Febraury 6th: https://fb.me/e/3sr1xsWho

This link is to register and I would recommend if you want to find out more about it!

Also you can follow their social medias on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook!

For Instagram it is: ESB_MBA_FT
LinkedIn and Facebook: MBA Full Time in International Management